6.  The applicant was born in 1967. He is currently serving a life sentence in Ladyzhynska Correctional Colony no. 39, Gubnyk (“the Ladyzhynska Colony”), in the Vinnytsia Region.
7.  On 14 October 2003 the applicant, with several other individuals, was arrested on suspicion of having formed a criminal association and committed several murders, robberies and other crimes.
8.  On 6 January 2005 the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Court of Appeal, acting as a court of first instance, convicted the applicant as charged and sentenced him to life imprisonment.
9.  On 4 October 2005 the Supreme Court of Ukraine dismissed the applicant’s appeal.
10.  In October 2003 the applicant was remanded in custody pending criminal proceedings against him and placed in the Dnipropetrovsk Pre-trial Detention Centre (SIZO) no. 3, where he remained in detention until April 2007.
11.  According to the applicant, the conditions of his detention in SIZO no. 3 were incompatible with human dignity. In particular, for some time he had to share a ten-bed cell with nineteen detainees. However, for most of his time as an inmate in SIZO no. 3 he shared a two-bunk cell with one other inmate. The applicant spent most of the day in the cell, which measured 1.9 by 3.7 metres. The cell was located in the basement and so was exposed to hardly any daylight or fresh air, while the electric light was dim and there was no artificial ventilation. The cell lacked basic furniture and appliances, such as cupboards, a mirror or a rubbish bin. The toilet was some 1.2 metres from the dining table and was not separated from the living quarters. It smelled of excrement and was frequently flooded. The premises were infested with rats and were never disinfected. The detainees had very limited access to news and information about the outside world, the only source being a radio, which was turned on by the guards for a limited part of each weekday and was turned off completely at weekends. The food was meagre and consisted mostly of bread and wheat cereal. On numerous occasions the applicant’s requests for medical treatment for the after-effects of a head injury he had sustained in 2001 and for elevated blood pressure were ignored or rejected. Likewise, a request by the applicant to be placed in a solitary cell on account of his unstable psychological state was refused.
12.  The applicant submitted to the Court copies of abundant correspondence that he and his mother had conducted throughout his stay in SIZO no. 3 with prosecutorial and other authorities relating to a variety of issues concerning the conditions of his detention. In their responses, the authorities had maintained that there had been no breaches of the law in respect of the applicant. According to the applicant, a number of his letters to various authorities had received no response at all.
(b)  The Government’s account
13.  The Government stated that the conditions of the applicant’s detention in SIZO no. 3 had been adequate. They submitted a certificate from the SIZO no. 3 authorities dated February 2010 attesting that an inspection that they had carried out on that date had determined that each cell in SIZO no. 3 comprised at least 3.5 square metres per detainee housed. The dimensions of the bunks used in SIZO no. 3 were 1.85 metres by 0.70 metres. The basement cells, where the life prisoners were held, had windows measuring 1.10 meters by 1 meter, which afforded sufficient access to daylight. In the evenings the cells were lit by 100-watt bulbs, which enabled the detainees to read and write without damaging their eyes. Each window had a special ventilation pane which could be opened to air the cells. In addition, an electric ventilator in the corridor ensured artificial ventilation of the cells. The cells had radiators to ensure a stable temperature of between 18C and 20C. Each cell was equipped with two metal bunks, a chair, a shelf for personal belongings, a table, two small cupboards (which could also be used as stools for sitting on), a clothes hanger, a tap with a sink, a mirror, and a toilet. The toilets had “U-bend” pipes to prevent unpleasant odours; they were separated from the living area by fixed partitions.
14.  The Government further submitted (without providing any documents) that, as regards sanitary arrangements, the SIZO no. 3 detainees had weekly access to bathing facilities, where they were also provided with razors and scissors. The cells and other premises were cleaned and disinfected regularly; twice a year (in spring and autumn) thorough measures against rats were implemented and the entire SIZO no. 3 facility was disinfected. The detainees were provided with meals three times a day, freshly cooked by the SIZO no. 3 cooks. The food was varied and in conformity with applicable regulations concerning nutrition.
15.  The applicant had been able to consult various doctors when he needed to and was monitored regularly on account of a neurasthenic condition from which he suffered.
16.  In May 2007 the applicant was moved to the Ladyzhynska Colony no. 39 (“the Ladyzhynska Colony”) to serve his sentence, where, according to the case-file, he has been accommodated until present. The present application covers the period of the applicant’s detention in the Ladyzhynska Colony from May 2007 until June 2010.
17.  Before the case was communicated to the respondent Government, the applicant submitted that he had effectively being denied any medical service in the Ladyzhynska Colony. Because the colony regulations only allowed inmates to lie on their beds between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., the applicant had to lie on the floor during days when he felt unwell. Because of this, he had contracted a kidney condition, for which he was receiving no treatment.
18.  In his correspondence with the Court after the communication of the case to the Government on 25 November 2009, the applicant additionally notified the Court of other matters concerning his detention in the Ladyzhynska Colony which, according to him, constituted breaches of his rights. These matters included an alleged prolonged failure on the part of the administration to repair and clean the bathing facilities and to exterminate rats; the administration’s failure to renovate the applicant’s cell and to transfer him to the second floor, despite the fact that his parents had made donations towards the cost of renovating the prison; alleged instances of beating detainees by the guards and arbitrary orders of the administration that the detainees wear woollen hats in summer and assume unnatural positions when moving around the colony or when the doors to their cells were opened by guards. All of the applicant’s submissions were forwarded to the respondent Government.
19.  According to the Government, the conditions of the applicant’s detention in the Ladyzhynska Colony were fair and he was provided with prompt and sufficient medical attention when required. Upon his arrival, the applicant had been examined by the Ladyzhynska Colony’s doctors and found not to be suffering from any illness in an active phase. Subsequently, he had often consulted doctors and had been treated for various chronic conditions and contracted diseases, including hypertension, neurasthenia, intestinal dyskinesia, bladder infections, chronic haemorrhoids, and other complaints. The Government presented a detailed excerpt from the record of the applicant’s medical consultations (comprising over forty medical visits between summer 2007 and winter 2010). They also stated that there was no evidence to support the applicant’s complaints of ill-treatment by the Ladyzhynska Colony guards or administration.
20.  According to the applicant, on 24 August 2006 he was severely beaten by eight SIZO no. 3 guards in response to his request for the radio to be turned on. He further alleged that his request that a doctor examine and record his injuries had been refused and that he had only been given a painkiller by way of medical treatment. Subsequently (on 16 February 2007), during the applicant’s temporary stay in SIZO no. 15 in Simferopol, he had been X-rayed in the course of tuberculosis screening and told by a doctor that traces of a recent rib fracture could be observed on the X-ray. The applicant had been unable, however, to obtain a written record of that conversation.
21.  The applicant presented statements by two detainees, M. and Ch., who alleged that on 24 August 2006 they had heard the applicant crying out. In addition, Ch. stated that he had been the applicant’s cellmate and had seen him bruised and in pain. According to the applicant, both he and Ch. had complained about the incident to the SIZO no. 3 governor and to the prosecutor’s office, but those complaints had received no response. He presented to the Court copies of several handwritten letters that referred to the incident, but did not present any records confirming that those letters had actually been sent.
22.  According to the Government, the prosecutor’s office had never received any complaints concerning the applicant’s alleged beating on 24 August 2006.
23.  In 2008 the applicant lodged an administrative complaint against the governor of SIZO no. 3, claiming compensation for “moral damage” to his “honour and dignity” as a result of the governor’s alleged omissions, including the failure to investigate his complaint concerning the alleged beating on 24 August 2006. On 14 August 2008 the Kyiv District Administrative Court gave the applicant until 14 October 2008 to rectify procedural shortcomings in his submissions (in particular, his failure to pay the court fee). According to the case file, the applicant did not pay the fee and did not appeal against the aforementioned court decision.
24.  On 9 September 2010 the senior doctor at SIZO no. 15 issued a certificate attesting that on 16 February and 13 and 23 March 2007 the applicant had been X-rayed and found not to be suffering any pathological condition, and no traces of any rib fractures had been visible on the X-ray.
25.  From autumn 2005 the applicant filed numerous applications (specifically, on 3 and 11 November 2005, 28 February, 14 March, 6 and 26 July, 5 October, 27 November, and 11, 21 and 25 December 2006 and 10 January 2007) with the State Department for the Enforcement of Punishments (“the Prison Department”) and various other authorities requesting a transfer to a detention facility located closer to his hometown of Simferopol, in the Crimea, in order to facilitate visits by his parents and minor son. He noted, in particular, that his parents were pensioners (his mother was born in 1940 and his stepfather in 1925) who were unable to undertake long-distance travel for financial and health reasons (his step-father had a serious disability; his mother suffered from hypertension and other diseases and was his stepfather’s primary caregiver). On a number of occasions the applicant’s mother also sent similar requests to the Prison Department and other authorities.
26.  On several occasions (specifically, on 28 October 2005, 28 July and 18 October 2006 and 7 February, 13 March and 12 April 2007) the Prison Department responded to the applicant and his mother by promising to take their requests into account if space became available at an appropriate detention facility.
27.  On other occasions (in particular, on 13 December 2005 and 31 January, 19 August and 6 December 2006) the Prison Department informed them that it was not possible to accommodate their requests, as there were no penal institutions accommodating life prisoners in the Crimea.
28.  On 25 July 2007, following his transfer in May 2007 to the Ladyzhynska Colony, the applicant complained to the National Ombudsman that the Prison Department had transferred him to that facility without paying any regard whatsoever to his wish to maintain contact with his family. The applicant noted, in particular, that the Ladyzhynska Colony located in the village of Gubnyk, which had no train connection, was some 1,000 kilometres from his parents’ home in Simferopol. It took rides in two trains, followed by either an expensive private taxi or an infrequent bus, to travel from his parents’ home to Gubnyk. The journey took some twenty-four hours one way, which was impossible for his disabled stepfather and very difficult for his ailing mother, in addition to being financially burdensome. The applicant also noted that, to the best of his knowledge, Colony no. 55 in Volniansk, in the Zaporizhzhia Region, which could be accessed by direct train from Simferopol, was equipped for accommodating life prisoners, and asked the National Ombudsman to explore the possibility of transferring him to that establishment.
29.  On 29 August 2007 the Prison Department, to which the applicant’s complaint had been forwarded by the National Ombudsman’s office, responded that it was not possible to grant his request because under applicable law, a prisoner had, as a general rule, to serve his or her entire sentence in one establishment, save in exceptional circumstances preventing him or her from remaining there.
30.  On numerous occasions between 2007 and 2015 the applicant and his mother asked the Prison Department to review the decision concerning the applicant’s placement in the light of their personal situation and their mutual wish to maintain contact by means of regular visits. All those requests were turned down, either with reference to the aforementioned legal rule and the absence of any “exceptional circumstances” preventing the applicant from staying in the Ladyzhynska Colony (specifically, on 5 October and 8 November 2007, 23 January, 14 February, 30 October 2008, 23 June 2009, and 6 April 2010) or with reference to the unavailability of any space in other establishments (specifically, on 29 March, 3 June and 14 July 2010).
31.  In March 2011 the applicant brought an action in the Vinnytsia District Administrative Court seeking to oblige the State Prison Service (the successor of the State Department for the Enforcement of Punishments) (hereinafter also referred to as “Prison Department”) to transfer him to an establishment situated closer to his parents’ home – in particular, in Volniansk – reiterating his previous arguments concerning the difficulties faced by his parents in travelling to the Ladyzhynska Colony. He also noted that during his detention in the Ladyzhynska Colony, his mother had been able to visit him only three times (on 18 September 2007, 25 June 2008 and 18 June 2009), even though according to the applicable rules the applicant had been eligible to receive two four-hour visits a year (before January 2010) and was now (since January 2010) eligible to receive four such visits. One of the aforementioned visits had lasted only two hours instead of four, because the applicant’s mother had needed to catch a bus.
32.  On 20 May 2011 the court dismissed the applicant’s claims. It noted, in particular, that under the applicable law, unless a convicted prisoner was eligible for a transfer to an establishment with a more relaxed regime (which was not the applicant’s case), a transfer to a facility with an equivalent regime was possible only when there existed “exceptional circumstances” preventing him or her from remaining in his or her current establishment. The remoteness of a prison facility from the place of residence of a prisoner’s parents did not constitute such “exceptional circumstances”.
33.  On 27 September 2011 the Vinnytsia Administrative Court of Appeal dismissed the applicant’s appeal against the above judgment and endorsed the first-instance court’s reasoning.
34.  On 16 April 2014 the applicant’s stepfather died. According to the applicant, his mother, aged 75 and only able to walk with the aid of a cane, is unable at present to undertake a 1,000-kilometre journey by public transport to visit him.